The present invention relates to a driver assistance system and method for approving an autonomous or piloted garage parking.
The following discussion of related art is provided to assist the reader in understanding the advantages of the invention, and is not to be construed as an admission that this related art is prior art to this invention.
For many years driver assistance systems have been an important aspect in the field of development of motor vehicles. In most cases driver assistance systems are electronic or electronically controlled additional devices in the (motor) vehicle for supporting the driver or user in certain driving situations. Driver assistance systems can serve for making the operation of a motor vehicle more comfortable and/or safer.
Examples for driver assistance systems are the anti-blocking system (ABS), the driving dynamic control (ESP), the adaptive high beam assistant, the rain sensor, the emergency brake assistant, the distance control assistant, the lane change assistant, the lane recognition assistant or stop assistant and the traffic sign recognition.
A further example for driver assistance systems are parking support systems or parking assistance systems which make it easier for a driver to park the motor vehicle into a parking lot or which park the motor vehicle into a parking lot entirely autonomously.
Parking assistance systems usually have one or multiple sensors with which the vicinity of the motor vehicle is scanned for obstacles and/or free spaces. When a parking lot is recognized, the parking assistance system either provides information for the driver for the correct parking of the motor vehicle or—in the case of active park steering assistance systems—autonomously performs all processes required for the correct parking, and autonomously controls the vehicle systems required for these processes.
According to the current state-of-the-art it is possible to have a park assistant steering the motor vehicle into a parking lot. In principal this requires a driver who oversees the process, actively initiates the process and continuously attends the process (for example by actively actuating the key, gas and brake control etc.). A goal of development are piloted or autonomous parking systems without involvement of a person in the actual parking process. A direction within this development is autonomous garage parking in which the driver can place his car in a defined position in a region to be defined, exit the car, activate the parking function and leave the car behind.
It would be desirable and advantageous to provide an improved driver assistance system for authorizing an autonomous or piloted garage parking in situations of a multitude of possible garage standing surfaces or target standing surfaces.